Sucessfull marketing?

Releasing your next album free for all who want it via the Internet, is this a tactic that helps or hinders your cause? Does the artist really care if it helps or hinders their future cash intake? Case in point is one of my favorite artists, Nine Inch Nails. Trent Resnor thumbed his nose at the record label industry in the peak of a feud by releasing his album The Slip via the Internet as a free download. Granted if you are a super fan there were upgraded versions that you could purchase, myself, I took the free version. At the same time Ghosts I–IV was made available in a number of different formats and forms, ranging from a free download of the first volume, to a $300 Ultra-Deluxe limited edition package. I purchased the full version and have enjoyed both albums. These were as a result of entanglements with Universal Music Group about the distribution and pricing of his last album Year Zero. So any opinions on Reznors move? Was it smart, will it pay off, is he a "Martyr"? I think his revenue from live performances will be rewarding enough. Maybe he has already made enough money to be comfortable and it is the art that is important.